Confabulation
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Confabulation refers to the creation of fabricated, distorted, or misinterpreted memories without the intent to deceive. discusses confabulation in various contexts, notably in individuals with memory deficits such as those caused by brain damage or age-related dementia. In such cases, people might create elaborate and plausible stories to fill gaps in their memory. This isn't lying; it's an automatic response by certain brain circuits that generate story-like content 1.
In the context of major depression, confabulation can occur in a form called delusional anti-self confabulation. Here, individuals might genuinely believe and describe scenarios where they see themselves in a negative, unrealistic light. For example, an athlete with an injury might downplay their recovery progress despite evidence to the contrary, reflecting a skewed self-perception driven by depressive thoughts 1.
Additionally, also explores how memory and our understanding of events can be inherently confabulatory, particularly in social or performance contexts, such as in magic tricks or other situations that manipulate memory and perception. This illustrates how confabulation is also a broader feature of how our minds process and recall experiences 2.
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